The Devil's Bartender

Mike Doughty Rocked!

I saw Mike Doughty last week at the Rivoli and he is without a doubt one of the most charasmatic performers out there.  It was just him, his guitar, and 'Handsome Dan Chen' on the keyboards.  They were able to rock it out when it needed to be rocked out and strip it down to the bare bones when the mood called for it.  In between songs the man is a showman on his own plane.

That show almost made up for never having seen Soul Coughing.  Almost...

There's Hope!

Let's Fix Cancon is giving indie artists (like Red Velvet Revolution for an example off the top of my head...) a chance to get some airplay by changing the way Candian content is regulated. 

Right now radio stations have to play a certain percentage and they usually stick to the 'safe bets' to hit that percentage.  But Let's Fix Cancon is trying to change the point system so that playing a Canadian indie artists counts for more points than 'Near, far, wherever you are.'  (With all due respect to Celine.  I'm sure she wouldn't mind sharing the airwaves with some other Canadian dudes.)

And the good news is that the whole movement is gaining moment and some getting positive press coverage.  Check out the CBC and the Globe and Mail for their take on it all.  And if you want to do your part to make Canadian radio a little better you can sign the petition here.